USA TODAY International Edition
Study: ‘ Screen time’ isn’t always harmful
Time in front of screens – TV, video games, smartphones – hurts kids’ performance at school, right?
Not necessarily. Some screen time is worse than others when it comes to kids and academic performance, according to a new analysis published in the medical journal JAMA Pediatrics.
Television viewing, followed by video games, were the two activities most tied to poor school performance, researchers showed in a review of 58 studies published over the decades.
That kind of screen time affected both children and teens – though overall, teens’ performance seemed to suffer the most as screen time increased.
Other screen time, such as playing on phones or surfing the internet, didn’t yield any clear indication that they were wrecking kids’ achievement.
That means parents should set limits for individual activities, especially TV and video games.
“It’s increasingly clear that it may be time to move past ‘ screen time’ as a useful term,” said Michael Robb, senior director of research for Common Sense, a nonprofit that makes entertainment and technology recommendations for families and schools.
Researchers are trying to figure out whether a digitally addicted culture spells trouble for the future.
Pew Research Center found last year that 95% of teenagers have a smartphone or access to one, and 45% say they are near- constantly online. In fact, many are digitally tethered nearly 24/ 7.
Nearly 4 in 10 children keep their mobile phones within reach of their bed, according to a survey published in May by Common Sense. They are twice as likely as their parents to have their phone in bed with them. Girls outpaced boys 33%- 26%.
This new analysis is important because it separates out the screens most closely associated with leisure time – TV and video games – as opposed to those that can be used in conjunction with schoolwork, said Victor Fornari, vice chairman of the Child & Adolescent Psychiatry department at Zucker Hillside Hospital in Glen Oaks, New York.